Liverpool have five options to replace Hugo Ekitike after red card incident

Hugo Ekitike has hit the ground running at Liverpool after his £79million move from Eintracht Frankfurt this summer. The 23-year-old made an immediate impact, scoring on his debut against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield last month. He has become the first Liverpool player to score in each of his first three games since Daniel Sturridge in 2013, boasting a remarkable tally of five goals from just eight appearances. Despite it being early in the season, Ekitike currently tops the Reds' scoring charts with usual top scorer Mohamed Salah sitting in second place with three goals.

His impressive form earned him his first cap for France earlier this month. This is particularly noteworthy given that Liverpool have recently signed Alexander Isak from Newcastle United in a record-breaking £125m deal. Both forwards found the back of the net in midweek, with Isak scoring his first goal for the club against Southampton in the League Cup third round. Ekitike netted a late winner for the Reds, also scoring the decisive goal in last weekend's Merseyside derby. However, he was subsequently sent off for a second bookable offence after celebrating by removing his shirt. As a result of his actions, Ekitike will now serve a one-game ban and will miss Liverpool's upcoming match against Palace.

Under normal circumstances, record signing Isak would be the obvious choice to lead the line. However, having started against Southampton and with Liverpool carefully managing his game time, it might not be that straightforward.

Isak has made four appearances for club and country so far this season and started against both Atletico Madrid and Southampton. After making his debut against the La Liga team and playing for 58 minutes, it was somewhat surprising to see him only play the first half against the Saints.

The forward hasn't started a Premier League match or played a full 90 minutes since the final day of last season. Slot, meanwhile, recently confessed that he doesn't anticipate the forward returning to top form until after the October international break.

He might give Isak a second start in five days, but this will entirely depend on his fitness. If he does start, don't expect him to play the full 90 minutes.

If Slot decides to handle Isak with kid gloves, he does have other options and the prime candidate would be Federico Chiesa.

The Italian was the standout performer against Southampton, providing two assists. He began the match on the right, was moved to the number 10 role and then switched to the left following the Reds' substitutions.

However, the majority of his playing time this season has been as a substitute striker in the Premier League. He was also brought on as a striker against both Arsenal and Burnley, but was omitted from the squad for matches against Atletico Madrid and Everton.

An unexpected option that Slot could consider, having avoided it throughout his tenure as Liverpool's head coach, is Cody Gakpo. One of the first actions the Dutchman took upon arriving at Anfield was to return his compatriot to his preferred left-wing position.

Interestingly, there isn't much difference between his scoring record when playing upfront or on the left. He has netted 17 goals from 52 appearances as a central striker for Liverpool and 23 from 64 games on the left.

Slot has never deployed his fellow Dutchman in a central role and it would likely take a significant shift for the Liverpool manager to change this approach now.

In fact, his squad may be even better equipped for a system without a recognised centre-forward following the £116m signing of Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen.

In Ekitike's absence against Palace, the German is expected to return to Liverpool's starting XI. With Slot previously stating that he could be used as a false nine, Wirtz may be brought back in an attacking role alongside Szoboszlai.

The wildcard option now is Jayden Danns. The 19-year-old made his first senior appearance of the season off the bench against Southampton in midweek.

He has already made 10 appearances for Liverpool, netting three times, and has been featured thrice in the Premier League. However, it would be a daring move if Slot decides to give the youngster his first full league debut at this stage.

With his father Neil having spent three and a half seasons playing for Palace, there would be a touch of nostalgia if Danns Jnr was given his first Premier League start at Selhurst Park.

Instead, it seems more probable that he might make an appearance on matchday, especially if Slot needs additional attacking support in Ekitike's absence. But with several senior players expected to rejoin the squad after being rested against Southampton, such a need is far from certain.

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